Disappointed in court's decision on same-sex marriage
I wish to express my disappointment with the California Supreme Court for overturning the state's ban on same-sex marriage. The decision does not reflect the true heart and soul of a state in touch with its democratic roots and moral foundation.

Price increases hurt workers
With all due respect, I think it is fantastic that Sen. Ted Stevens, R-Alaska, commends us for reducing the electricity use by 30 percent (I'm green), and how it is an example for the rest of the country; I also feel it is a slap in the face.

Ex-Juneau DJ's novel considered for movie
Tony Bender, a former Juneau disc jockey, is the publisher of two small-town North Dakota newspapers, meaning he sells ads, write stories, edits copy, designs pages, supervises printing, and hauls the weekly editions to the post office.

Correction
A story about Ultimate Frisbee in Thursday's Juneau Empire had wrong information about the playing times. The correct times include:

Photo: Mr. Peepers flies free
An bald eagle named Mr. Peepers flies out of a kennel Sunday after being released by the Juneau Raptor Center at Brotherhood Bridge park. The raptor center's Jamie Sorg said Mr. Peepers got his name because he was found by eye doctor Gordon Preecs. Sorg said the eagle was found in February, dehydrated and apparently unable to thrive in the middle of winter.

Photo: Riding to work
Ben Lyman, left, and Tim Lydon ride their bikes to work Friday as part of Bike to Work Day in Juneau. They attended a gathering at Centennial Hall, where cyclists set out for a group ride.

AEL&P offers to fund energy crisis reviews
Alaska Electric Light & Power Co. offered up to $30,000 Friday for the city to conduct an independent audit of the cost of power adjustment expenses and collections related to the energy crisis.

Marguerite Jacobson
Former Angoon resident Marguerite "Peg" Jacobson died the morning of April 17, 2008, in Ketchikan, ending a full and wonderful life, her family said. She was 89.

Robert 'Bob' Hurt
Juneau resident Robert "Bob" Hurt died May 13, 2008, at Alaska Regional Hospital after a sudden illness. He was 58.

John Clark Jones
Former Juneau resident John Clark (Jack) Jones died Feb. 26, 2008, while wintering in Palm Springs, surrounded by his family. He was 80.

Florence May Hansen
Longtime Juneau resident Florence May Hansen died unexpectedly on May 14, 2008, at Bartlett Regional Hospital in Juneau. She was 78.

Gerald Ray Vaught
Former longtime Juneau resident Gerald Ray Vaught died May 3, 2008, in Sitka in a bicycle accident. He was 54.

Dick Meckem Chitty
Former Juneau resident Dick Meckem Chitty died May 8, 2008, in Anacortes, Wash., after a year's battle with small-cell lung cancer. He was 77.

My turn: Palin's subsidy plans suppress conservation
G ov. Sarah Palin wants to take $1.2 billion out of the state treasury and put it on the street to help Alaskans deal with soaring energy costs. It's a significant amount of money - about $2,000 per Alaskan if it were distributed as an Alaska Permanent Fund dividend. There is no doubt that Alaska households are suffering from high energy prices, and that those same high prices are enriching the state government beyond any conceivable need for services or savings. But Palin's proposal fails common sense tests.

Opinion: Please, 'Go outside and play'
C an you forgive her?In March, Lenore Skenazy, a New York City mother, gave her 9-year-old son, Izzy, a MetroCard, a subway map, a $20 bill and some quarters for pay phones. Then she let him make his own way home from Bloomingdale's department store - by subway and bus.

My turn: Save water, save energy
Juneau residents should be proud of their efforts to conserve electricity in the wake of the Snettisham avalanches that cut off our main power source. Collectively, the community has reduced its energy use from 1,006 megawatt hours April 15 to 660 megawatt hours four weeks later, on May 13. That's a 34 percent decrease.

Out & AboutToday: International Migratory Bird Day celebration, 8 a.m.-noon, Community Garden on Montana Creek Road. With bird-banding demonstration and other activities. Details: 586-8800 or Gwen, gbaluss@yahoo.com.

Enjoying spring on Mount Roberts
On the last day of April, the first cruise ship of the season arrived in Juneau, so the Mount Roberts Tramway was operating. Dozens of tourists crammed the up-bound cars, along with three locals carrying snowshoes. The snow at the top of the tram was still many feet deep, and a steep-walled tunnel had been carved from the main building to the nature center.

Columbia's return to service delayed
JUNEAU - Shipyard personnel worked through the night Thursday and Coast Guard officials agreed to continue an inspection process through the weekend to expedite the certificate process for the ferry Columbia.

Utility investigates power line fire
ANCHORAGE - Chugach Electric Association is investigating the cause of a fire that burned a plastic ball marker on a Fort Richardson power line.

Electric company asks for levelized billing
JUNEAU - Alaska Electric Light & Power Co. filed a proposal with the Regulatory Commission of Alaska on Friday asking to broaden its levelized billing option to include all residents and small commercial customers.

Juneau sweeps track meet
Adair-Kennedy Memorial Field was the site of the Region V Track & Field Championships this weekend.

Judge tosses Ben Stevens' fine
ANCHORAGE - A Superior Court judge says the Alaska Public Offices Commission was wrong to find that former state Senate President Ben Stevens violated state law by failing to disclose the clients of one of his consulting firms.

Wasp stings are on the rise in Alaska
Two summers ago a huge hatch of wasps descended on Fairbanks. University of Alaska Fairbanks entomologist Derek Sikes estimated there were about 10 times more yellow jackets that year than normal. Inevitably they bumped into people. School events were canceled because too many kids were getting stung.

Photo: Precious cargo
Alaska Airlines copilot Mark Awon walks down a red carpet Friday morning with the first of this season's Copper River King Salmon at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport. Following Awon is Capt. Ken Williams. The flight had 7,500 pounds of the fish, down from an original estimate of 36,000 pounds because of poor weather.

Ketchikan told to wait for road maintenance
Significant state road maintenance in Ketchikan will have to wait until at least July because the regional maintenance budget is "essentially exhausted," according to the Department of Transportation.